Mahsa Amini was a 22 year old Iranian woman taken into custody for not abiding by government statutes set in place regarding the hijab. Amini died under suspicious circumstances in police custody, in a hospital in Tehran. 

Iran has had in place a mandatory dress code for women across the country. Possible punishments range from fines to imprisonment, and are typically administered by the Guidance Patrol, the religious morality police of Iran’s government. From 1979, the Iranian government has issued differing statements of punishments from arrests to, again, fines. In August 2022 Iran released a statement launching the new dress codes, specifically that female employees within the government will be fired from their jobs if they post pictures on the Internet that do not abide by Islamic laws. A few days later, Mahsa Amini died in police custody after not wearing a hijab and outwardly protesting the law. 

Women all over the world are horrified by the extent to which the Iranian government is silencing women’s voices. In protest, many young Iranian women are taking to the Internet and cutting their hair and hijabs as a way of protesting these cruel laws. Dean of Student Life Señora Simonds raised an interesting thought on the importance of the protests. “From what I have seen through the news, it seems as though these women are putting themselves on the line to fight for a human rights violation. But, they know that they could be killed by outwardly disobeying the Iranian government. I may be wrong but it’s as if at this point they are okay with the thought of dying, if in turn what they are doing is helping future generations of women and girls in Iran.” In addition, sophomore Grace Ulrich thinks that the Iranian government shutting off access to the internet to the citizens of Iran has made it hard for people on the outside to fully understand what is happening in Iran. 

Iranian women have given their lives to protest the unfair treatment they live under. As global citizens, it is important that we be aware of the ongoing protests in Iran, and aid however we can.